Sabalenka survives massive Cincinnati struggle

Top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka fought through a three-hour battle to hold off an inspired Emma Raducanu 7-6 (7/3), 4-6, 7-6 (7/5) on Monday and reach the fourth round of the ATP and WTA Cincinnati Open. The top seed, who won the Cincinnati final a year ago over Jessica Pegula, increased her lead at the top of […]

Top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka fought through a three-hour battle to hold off an inspired Emma Raducanu 7-6 (7/3), 4-6, 7-6 (7/5) on Monday and reach the fourth round of the ATP and WTA Cincinnati Open.

The top seed, who won the Cincinnati final a year ago over Jessica Pegula, increased her lead at the top of the WTA Tour match-win statistics as she secured her 49th of the season.

But the struggle was real for Sabalenka, who finished with two aces in the closing stages.

“I’m happy to get through this difficult match,” Sabalenka said. “I just hope tomorrow is a day off. I need time to recover from such a great battle.”

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Raducanu put up a huge fight, matching Sabalenka throughout.